what a motivated seller looks like, as 426 West Broadway loft sells

a poster child
The Manhattan loft 426 West Broadway #2G sold on June 23. Aside from being a happy day for the seller, that occasion shows us what someone who really wants to sell will do to, well, sell. To say that these folks came to market in a tough market is a bit of an understatement, as they started two weeks after The Fall of The House of Lehman, on September 28, 2008, at $1.875mm. They hung in there until May 1, 2009, eventually getting down to $1.695mm before admitting they’d been beaten by The Market and taking a breather on May 1, 2009.

persist, drop price; repeat
But they really wanted to sell, so when they came back to The Market on February 13 at $1.795mm they briefly tested the theory used successfully by a bunch of lofts in 2010. (See my July 8, another sign that 2010 is not 2009, as 60 West 15 Street loft sells, my June 30, Chelsea House kinda sorta holds its own, reveals Truths in The Market, and my June 15, 808 Broadway seller bites painful bullet, closes off 15% since 2006.)

But they really wanted to sell, so when that price did not work they dropped quickly (by March 24) to that tried-but-so-far-untrue price of $1.695mm. But they really wanted to sell, so when that price did not work they dropped quickly (by April 6, a mere 2 weeks later) to $1.649mm. That price worked (because they really wanted to sell), in that it generated an offer that they were able to negotiate to $1.52mm to find a contract by April 29 and that closing on June 23.

memo from the Department of Redundancy Department
To recap: these sellers got frozen out of The Market during the nuclear winter of late 2008 – Spring 2009, but proved that they (yes, caps this time) REALLY wanted to sell by dropping the price twice within 10 weeks and negotiating a further 8% off the last asking price. Looks to me as though they really wanted to sell….

meet the (oh so stubborn, similarly motivated) neighbors
Maybe the #2G sellers were inspired to come back to The Market in February and to do what it takes by their upstairs neighbors in #6G. These penthouse sellers were also trying to sell during a frigid market, were also unsuccessful for a long time, but stayed in The Market while dropping the price enough to (eventually, very eventually) earn a contract.

 Look at that patience, holding at $2.325mm for more than 5 months. Look at that flexibility, negotiating to a contract at a 16% discount by January 28. Assuming that the #2G owners were aware of this negotiation (at least in broad terms), imagine how they took the long-awaited penthouse deal as inspiration to come back to The Market and to do what it takes. ITAL

Inspiration is a wonderful thing! As is the fortitude to take what is available in The Market, even if it is way less than they wanted to get when they started. (19% less, in the case of #2G; 25% less in the case of #6G.)

If you really want to sell, you gotta do what you gotta do.

A tip of the Manhattan Loft Guy hat to both sellers and their agents.

© Sandy Mattingly 2010